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In Focus: 10/29/2010

Top News

2010 HOMECOMING WEEKEND WILL CELEBRATE SEVERAL ANNIVERSARIES

More than 1,000 alumni are expected to return to campus Nov. 5-7 for the 2010 Homecoming and Reunion Weekend.

Among the weekend’s 80 planned events are celebrations of several important anniversaries. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Alpha Omicron Chapter of Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity, the 60th anniversary of the Lois Perkins Chapel, and the 10th anniversary of the Jameson 5K run.

2010-11 KING CREATIVITY GRANTS WILL ENABLE STUDENTS TO PURSUE INNOVATIVE PROJECTS

Students who want to investigate subjects ranging from the construction of an electric cello to using sound waves to desalinate water will be able to do so in the coming year thanks to grants from the King Creativity Fund.

This is the 11th year the fund has supported “innovative and visionary projects” proposed by Southwestern students. The fund was established in 2000 with an endowment provided by Southwestern alumnus W. Joseph “Joey” King. Each year, the fund supports up to 20 projects. This year, more than $20,000 was awarded to fund 12 projects. Students will present their projects at a symposium to be held on Monday, April 4, 2011.

Events

OPERA THEATRE ENSEMBLE TO PERFORM OCT. 29 AND 30

The Southwestern University Opera Theatre Ensemble will present scenes from two different works on Friday, Oct. 29, and Saturday, Oct. 30. Both performances will begin at 7 p.m. in the Alma Thomas Theater.

The first part of the performance will be scenes from “The Magic Flute” by W.A. Mozart. The second part will be “Art Song Café” in which students take a song they are familiar with, create a character, set up a dramatic reason to sing the song and afterwards, transition out of their song and help set up the next person’s song and situation.

The performances are free and open to the public.

FINANCIAL PLANNING FAIR FOR CAMPUS COMMUNITY TO BE HELD NOV. 13

The Fringe Benefits Committee and the Staff Affairs Council are sponsoring a free financial planning fair for students, faculty and staff on Saturday, Nov. 13, from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Campus Center and Olin Building.

Certified Financial Planners will be offering workshops on savings, investment, retirement, debt management, and health care savings options. In addition, participants can attend an individual session with a planner to discuss their particular financial concerns.

Media Coverage

The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette did a feature story on Religion Professor Laura Hobgood Oster’s new book. Read the story here (subscription required for full access). Hobgood-Oster also did an interview about her new book with Immaculate Heart Radio in Sacramento, Calif.

The Williamson County Sun did a story on the Prothro Center receiving LEED certification.

The Williamson County Sun did a story about the Bead the Change program started by student Jenna Gaska.

Notables

Southwestern and its student environmental group, Students for Environmental Activism and Knowledge (SEAK), received a Sustainability Leadership Award last week from Georgetown350, a local non-profit dedicated to education and the development of sustainability best practices. The award was given “in recognition of the courage, commitment, cooperation and collaboration manifested in becoming a model of sustainable practices on campus, and a bold educator in civic engagement with the world.” SEAK members staffed the recent Sustainability Expo produced by Georgetown350 at the Monument Café on Oct. 10, presenting multiple facets of the university’s extensive sustainability effort.

Carlos D’Oro, assistant professor of Spanish, participated in a panel about Latin American film at the Rocky Mountain Modern Language Association Convention held at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque Oct. 14-16. D’Oro presented a paper titled “Film, Nation, and Gender Representation in the Colombian Caribbean.”

Laura Hobgood-Oster, professor of religion, is one of four people representing the Humane Society’s faith-based initiative who will meet at the White House Nov. 4 with Joshua Dubois, executive director of the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

Elisabeth Piedmont-Marton, associate professor of English, served as an outside program evaluator at Lake Forest College in Illinois.

Ken Mello, assistant professor of religion, is participating in a panel discussion at the American Academy of Religion meeting in Atlanta this weekend. The panel is titled “Defining Religious Freedom: Reading Tisa Wenger’s We Have a Religion: The 1920s Pueblo Indian Dance Controversy and American Religious Freedom.”